[Deschler's Precedents, Volume 7, Chapters 22 - 25]
[Chapter 24. Bills, Resolutions, and Memorials]
[A. Introductory; Various Types of Bills, Resolutions, and Other Mechanisms for Action]
[Â§ 5. Concurrent Resolutions]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[Page 4801-4821]
 
                               CHAPTER 24
 
              Bills, Resolutions, Petitions, and Memorials
 
    A. INTRODUCTORY; VARIOUS TYPES OF BILLS, RESOLUTIONS, AND OTHER 
                         MECHANISMS FOR ACTION
 
Sec. 5. Concurrent Resolutions

    Concurrent resolutions are used as a means by which the two Houses 
may concurrently express certain facts, or declare certain principles, 
opinions, or purposes. A concurrent resolution is binding on neither 
House until agreed to by both. They are not used in the adoption of 
general legislation. Concurrent resolutions are used in the adoption of 
joint rules, setting up joint committees, expressing the sense of 
Congress on propositions,(3) and in recent years as vehicles 
by which both Houses are permitted to approve or disapprove of certain 
executive actions, pursuant to laws containing mechanisms for such 
procedures (see House Rules and Manual, 97th Congress, ``Congressional 
Disapproval'' provisions contained in public laws).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 3. Procedure in the U.S. House of Representatives (97th Cong.) Ch. 24 
        Sec. 1.3.
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    The important practical consideration to be kept in mind in 
distinguishing joint and concurrent resolutions, in the current usage, 
is that only the former must be submitted to the President for his 
approval before taking effect. A concurrent resolution does not involve 
an exercise of the legislative

[[Page 4802]]

power under article I of the Constitution in which the President must 
participate. The following language is found in article I, section 7, 
clause 3, of the Constitution:

        Every Order, Resolution, or Vote, to which the Concurrence of 
    the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on 
    a question of Adjournment) shall be presented to the President of 
    the United States; and before the Same shall take Effect, shall be 
    approved by him.

    Since the passage of a concurrent resolution requires the 
concurrence of both Houses, it is possible to argue, on the basis of 
this language, that a concurrent resolution also requires submission to 
the President for his approval. However, the Congress has never 
accepted this literal interpretation. In 1897 the Committee on the 
Judiciary of the Senate issued a report on the nature of the concurrent 
resolution.(4) The committee found that:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 4. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Inquiry in Regard to River and 
        Harbor Act, S. Rept. No. 1335, 54th Cong. 2d Sess. (1897); 4 
        Hinds' Precedents Sec. 3483.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        . . . [T]he Constitution looks beyond the mere form of a 
    resolution in determining whether it should be presented to the 
    President, and looks rather to the subject-matter of the resolution 
    itself to ascertain whether it is one ``to which the concurrence of 
    the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary.''
        The Constitution prescribes no definite form in which 
    legislation shall be framed. The manner by which the legislative 
    will may be expressed seems to be left to the discretion of 
    Congress, except that section 7 (article I) seems to imply that it 
    is to be done by bill, as it expressly provides that ``every bill 
    which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate 
    shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the President of 
    the United States'' (subdivision 2); and it is also to be implied 
    from the provisions of subdivision 3 (article 1, sec. 7) that it 
    may be done by ``order, resolution, or vote,'' and in that case it 
    must be presented to the President as ``in the case of a bill.''

        . . . [N]o ``order, resolution, or vote'' need be presented to 
    the President unless its subject-matter is legislation to which the 
    Constitution expressly requires in the first instance the assent of 
    both Houses, matter to which such assent is constitutionally 
    necessary. In other words, the phrase ``to which the concurrence . 
    . . may be necessary'' should be held to refer to the 
    ``concurrence'' made ``necessary'' by the other provisions of the 
    Constitution and not to the mere form of the procedure; so that no 
    mere resolution, joint, concurrent, or otherwise, need be presented 
    to the President for his approval unless it relates to matter of 
    legislation to which the Constitution requires the concurrence of 
    both Houses of Congress and the approval of the President--in other 
    words, unless such Congressional action be the exercise of 
    ``legislative powers'' vested in Congress under the provisions of 
    section 1, article I.

[[Page 4803]]

                          -------------------

Use of Concurrent Resolution

Sec. 5.1 Concurrent resolutions are not used in practice to enact 
    legislation; but if they are so used, the approval of the President 
    would be required.
    On July 19, 1945,(5) the following memorandum was 
prepared and inserted in the Record by Senator Abe Murdock, of Utah:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 5. 91 Cong. Rec. 7809, 7810, 79th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                    Memorandum on Concurrent Resolutions

        Article I, section 7, subdivision 3 of the Constitution of the 
    United States provides:
        ``Every order, resolution, or vote, to which the concurrence of 
    the Senate and the House of Representatives may be necessary 
    (except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the 
    President of the United States.''
        While this constitutional provision would seem literally to 
    require that every concurrent resolution be submitted to the 
    President, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary has indicated that 
    a somewhat more liberal reading of the constitutional provision may 
    be warranted. Senate Report No. 1335, Fifty-fourth Congress, second 
    session, was submitted pursuant to a resolution of the Senate which 
    directed the Judiciary Committee to inquire, among other things, as 
    to whether concurrent resolutions generally are required to be 
    submitted to the President of the United States.
        On the subject of concurrent resolutions, the committee report 
    may be summarized as follows: Concurrent resolutions, except in a 
    few early instances in which the resolution was neither designated 
    as concurrent or joint, have not been used for the purposes of 
    enacting legislation but to express the sense of Congress upon a 
    given subject, to adjourn longer than 3 days, to make, amend, or 
    suspend joint rules, and to accomplish similar purposes, in which 
    both Houses have a common interest, but with which the President 
    has no concern. They have never embraced legislative provisions 
    proper, and hence have never been deemed to require Executive 
    approval. While resolutions, other than joint resolutions, may 
    conceivably embrace legislation, if they do so they require the 
    approval of the President. But Revised Statutes, Second Edition, 
    1878, page 2, sections 7 and 8, prescribe the form of bills and 
    joint resolutions, and it may properly be inferred that Congress 
    did not intend or contemplate that any legislation should 
    thereafter be enacted except by bill or joint resolution. That is a 
    fair inference, because Congress provided no form for legislation 
    by concurring resolution. Moreover, the rules of the respective 
    Houses treat bills and joint resolutions alike, and do not 
    contemplate that legislation shall be enacted in any other form or 
    manner.
        In substance, it was the conclusion of the committee that 
    concurrent resolutions were, as a matter of congressional practice, 
    never used to enact legislation, but that if they were so used the 
    approval of the President would be required. The committee report 
    concludes that--
        ``Whether concurrent resolutions are required to be submitted 
    to the Presi

[[Page 4804]]

    dent of the United States'' must depend not upon their mere form 
    but upon the fact whether they contain matter which is properly to 
    be regarded as legislative in its character and effect. If they do, 
    they must be presented for his approval; otherwise, they need not 
    be. In other words, we hold that the clause in the Constitution 
    which declares that every order, resolution, or vote must be 
    presented to the President, to ``which the concurrence of the 
    Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary,'' refers to 
    the necessity occasioned by the requirement of the other provisions 
    of the Constitution whereby every exercise of ``legislative power'' 
    involves the concurrence of the two Houses; and every resolution 
    not so requiring two concurrent actions, to wit, not involving the 
    exercise of legislative powers, need not be presented to the 
    President. In brief, the nature or substance of the resolution, and 
    not its form, controls the question of its disposition.''
        Cannon's Precedents of the House of Representatives, volume 
    VII, section 1045, states that a ``concurrent resolution'' is not 
    used in conveying title to Government property. His authority for 
    this statement is that on January 15, 1923, a concurrent resolution 
    declining a devise of land to be used as a national park was 
    considered and agreed to with the following amendment:
        Insert: ``Resolved by the Senate and the House of 
    Representatives of the United States of America in Congress 
    assembled'' in lieu of ``the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring).'' (64 Congressional Record 1773.)
        In section 1037 of volume VII, Cannon states that ``a 
    concurrent resolution is without force and effect beyond the 
    confines of the Capitol.'' In addition, in section 1084, Cannon 
    states that on June 1, 1920, the Senate was considering the 
    concurrent resolution respectfully declining to grant to the 
    Executive the power to accept a mandate over Armenia, as requested 
    in the message of the President, when Mr. Hitchcock, of Nebraska, 
    offered an amendment empowering the President to appoint American 
    members of a joint commission to supervise certain fiscal relations 
    of Armenia. Mr. Henry Cabot Lodge, of Massachusetts, presented a 
    point of order to the effect that this was a concurrent resolution, 
    that concurrent resolutions did not go to the President, but that 
    since the proposed amendment was legislation requiring the assent 
    of the President it would not be in order on a resolution which 
    does not go to the President. Thomas R. Marshall, Vice President of 
    the United States, said that so far as he was aware there was no 
    opinion of the Supreme Court to the effect that a concurrent 
    resolution need not go to the President, and consequently overruled 
    the point of order which had been made against it.
        In response to an inquiry from the Secretary of the Interior. 
    Attorney General Caleb Cushing, on August 23, 1854, rendered an 
    opinion in which he held that a declaratory resolution of either 
    House of Congress is not obligatory against the judgment of the 
    Executive. He characterized the contrary view as follows:
        ``According to the letter of the Constitution, resolutions of 
    the two Houses, even a joint resolution, when submitted to the 
    President and disapproved by him, do not acquire the

[[Page 4805]]

    force of law until passed anew by a concurrent vote of two-thirds 
    of each House. On the present hypothesis, the better way would be 
    not to present the resolution to the President at all, and then to 
    call on him to accept it as law, with closed eyes, and, however 
    against law he may know it to be, yet to execute it out of 
    deference to the assumed opinion of Congress.
        ``In the second place, the hypothesis puts an end to all the 
    forms of legislative scrutiny on the part of Congress. A 
    declaratory law, especially if it involve the expenditure of the 
    public treasure, has forms of legislation to go through to insure 
    due consideration. All these time-honored means of securing right 
    legislation will pass into desuetude, if the simple acceptance of a 
    resolution, reported by a committee, is to be received as a 
    constitutional enactment, obligatory on all concerned, including 
    the Executive.
        ``In this way, instead of the revenues of the Government being 
    subject only to the disposition of Congress in the form of a law 
    constitutionally enacted, they will be transferred to the control 
    of an accidential majority, expressing its will by a resolution, 
    passed, it may be, out of time, and under circumstances, in which a 
    law, duly and truly representing the will of Congress, could not 
    have passed. And thus, all those checks and guards against the 
    inconsiderate appropriation of the public treasure, so carefully 
    devised by the founders of the Government, will be struck out of 
    the Constitution.'' (6 Op. Attorney General 694.)
        With specific reference to the authority of Congress to declare 
    by resolution, without presentation to the President, the meaning 
    of an existing law, the Attorney General stated (idem, p. 694):
        ``A mere vote of either or of both Houses of Congress, 
    declaring its opinion of the proper construction of a general law, 
    has, be it repeated, in itself, no constitutional force or 
    obligation as law. It is opinion merely, and to be dealt with as 
    such, receiving more or less of deference, like other mere 
    opinions, according to the circumstances.''

Establishing Joint Committees

Sec. 5.2 The House adopted a concurrent resolution, establishing a 
    Joint Committee on the Organization of the Congress, reported by 
    the House Committee on Rules.

    On Mar. 3, 1965,(6) the Committee on Rules of the House 
of Representatives reported the following privileged resolution (H. 
Con. Res. 4):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 6. 111 Cong. Rec. 3995, 89th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That there is hereby established a Joint Committee on 
    the Organization of the Congress (hereinafter referred to as the 
    committee) to be composed of six Members of the Senate (not more 
    than three of whom shall be members of the majority party) to be 
    appointed by the President of the Senate, and six Members of the 
    House of Representatives (not more than three of whom shall be 
    members of the majority party) to be appointed by the Speaker of 
    the House

[[Page 4806]]

    of Representatives. The committee shall select a chairman and a 
    vice chairman from among its members. No recommendation shall be 
    made by the committee except upon a majority vote of the members 
    representing each House, taken separately.
        Sec. 2. The committee shall make a full and complete study of 
    the organization and operation of the Congress of the United States 
    and shall recommend improvements in such organization and operation 
    with a view toward strengthening the Congress, simplifying its 
    operations, improving its relationship with other branches of the 
    United States Government, and enabling it better to meet its 
    responsibilities under the Constitution . . .
        (d) The committee shall report from time to time to the Senate 
    and the House of Representatives the results of its study, together 
    with its recommendations, the first report being made not later 
    than one hundred and twenty days after the effective date of this 
    concurrent resolution. If the Senate, the House of Representatives, 
    or both, are in recess or have adjourned, the report shall be made 
    to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of 
    Representatives, or both, as the case may be. All reports and 
    findings of the committee shall, when received, be referred to the 
    Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate and the 
    appropriate committees of the House.(7)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 7. On Mar. 11, 1965 (Id. at pp. 4768-80) following the passage of H. 
        Con. Res. 4, S. Con. Res. 2 (an identical resolution) was taken 
        from the Speaker's table and agreed to. The language of this 
        concurrent resolution was similar to that employed in the 79th 
        Congress in setting up a joint committee to study a proposal 
        which resulted in the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946. 
        See H. Con. Res. 18, 79th Cong., H. Jour. pp. 80, 137, 79th 
        Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sec. 5.3 The Joint Committee on Hawaii was created by a concurrent 
    resolution.

    On Aug. 21, 1937,(8) the House agreed to the following 
concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 18):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 8. 81 Cong. Rec. 9624, 75th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That there is hereby created a joint congressional 
    committee to be known as the Joint Committee on Hawaii, which shall 
    be composed of not to exceed 12 Members of the Senate, to be 
    appointed by the President of the Senate, and not to exceed 12 
    Members of the House of Representatives and the Delegate from 
    Hawaii, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
    Representatives. The committee shall select a chairman from among 
    its members. The committee shall cease to exist upon making its 
    report to Congress pursuant to this resolution.
        Sec. 2. The committee is authorized and directed to conduct a 
    comprehensive investigation and study of the subject of statehood 
    and of other subjects relating to the welfare of the Territory of 
    Hawaii. The committee shall report to the Senate and to the House 
    of Representatives not later than January 15, 1938, the results of 
    its investigation and study, together with its rec

[[Page 4807]]

    ommendations for such legislation as it deems necessary or 
    desirable.
        Sec. 3. For the purpose of this resolution, the committee is 
    authorized to sit and act, as a whole or by subcommittee, at such 
    times and places as it deems advisable, to hold such hearings, to 
    administer such oaths and affirmations, to take such testimony, and 
    to have such printing and binding done as it deems necessary.

Sec. 5.4 A concurrent resolution is used to provide for the appointment 
    of a joint committee for the inauguration of the President-elect.

    On May 5, 1948,(9) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 48):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 9. 94 Cong. Rec. 5321, 80th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That a joint committee consisting of three Senators 
    and three Representatives, to be appointed by the President pro 
    tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 
    Representatives, respectively, is authorized to make the necessary 
    arrangements for the inauguration of the President-elect of the 
    United States on the 20th day of January 1949.

Sec. 5.5 A concurrent resolution provided for the appointment of a 
    joint committee to formulate plans for the commemoration of the 
    anniversary of the death of General Lafayette.

    On Feb. 2, 1934,(10) the House considered and passed the 
following concurrent resoluton (H. Con. Res. 26):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. 78 Cong. Rec. 1889, 73d Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That there is hereby established a special joint 
    congressional committee to be composed of five members of the 
    Senate to be appointed by the President of the Senate and five 
    members of the House of Representatives, to be appointed by the 
    Speaker of the House of Representatives, which shall make 
    appropriate arrangements for the commemoration of the one-hundredth 
    anniversary of the death of General Lafayette, occurring on May 20, 
    1934.

Authorizing Hearings

Sec. 5.6 The Joint Committee on Washington Metropolitan Problems was 
    authorized, by concurrent resolution, to hold hearings and report 
    to the Committee on the District of Columbia of the Senate and 
    House on two bills ``to aid in the development of an integrated 
    system of transportation for the National Capital region.''

    On Apr. 21, 1960,(11) the House considered and agreed to 
the fol
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. 106 Cong. Rec. 8546, 86th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 4808]]

lowing concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 101) from consideration of 
which the Rules Committee had been discharged:

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the Joint Committee on Washington Metropolitan 
    Problems, created by House Concurrent Resolution 172, agreed to 
    August 29, 1957 [and extended by S. Con. Res. 2 in the 86th 
    Congress], is hereby authorized to hold public hearings on the 
    bills S. 3193 and H.R. 11135, and to furnish transcripts of such 
    hearings, and make such recommendations as it sees fit, to the 
    Committees on the District of Columbia of the Senate and House of 
    Representatives, respectively.

Additional Committee Funds

Sec. 5.7 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution providing 
    additional funds for the Joint Committee on the Organization of the 
    Congress.

    On Jan. 27, 1966,(12) the House agreed to the following 
concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 69) which had been called up for 
consideration pursuant to a unanimous-consent request by Mr. Ray J. 
Madden, of Indiana:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. 112 Cong. Rec. 1341, 89th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the Joint Committee on the Organization of the 
    Congress, established by Senate Concurrent Resolution 2, Eighty-
    ninth Congress, agreed to March 11, 1965, is hereby authorized, 
    from February 1, 1966, through December 31, 1966, to expend not to 
    exceed $140,000 from the contingent fund of the Senate upon 
    vouchers approved by the chairman of the joint committee.

Adjournments

Sec. 5.8 The House agreed to a Senate concurrent resolution providing 
    for sine die adjournment of Congress.

    On Nov. 21, 1929,(13) the House considered and agreed to 
the following privileged Senate concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 
19):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. 71 Cong. Rec. 5916, 71st Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the President of the Senate and the Speaker of 
    the House of Representatives be authorized to close the present 
    session of the Congress by adjourning their respective Houses on 
    Friday, November 22, 1929, at the following hours, namely: the 
    Senate at the hour of 10 o'clock p.m., and the House at such hour 
    as it may by order provide.

Sec. 5.9 The House passed a concurrent resolution providing for 
    adjournment sine die and giving the consent of the House to an 
    adjournment sine die of the Senate at any time prior to Dec. 25, 
    1954.

[[Page 4809]]

    On Aug. 20, 1954,(14) the House considered and agreed to 
a Senate amendment to a concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 266):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
14. 100 Cong. Rec. 15554, 83d Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert ``That the 
    House of Representatives shall adjourn on August 20, 1954, and that 
    when it adjourns on said day, it stand adjourned sine die.
        ``Resolved further, That the consent of the House of 
    Representatives is hereby given to an adjournment sine die of the 
    Senate at any time prior to December 25, 1954, when the Senate 
    shall so determine; and that the Senate, in the meantime may 
    adjourn or recess for such periods in excess of 3 days as it may 
    determine.''

Sec. 5.10 Adjournments of more than three days have been effected 
    pursuant to concurrent resolution.

    On June 22, 1940,(15) the House adopted the following 
privileged concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 83):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
15. 86 Cong. Rec. 9085, 76th Cong. 3d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

         Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That when the two Houses adjourn on Saturday, June 22, 
    1940, they stand adjourned until 12 o'clock meridian, Monday, July 
    21, 1940.

Sec. 5.11 The House adopted a concurrent resolution providing that the 
    House adjourn from July 21 to Oct. 8, 1945, and consenting to a 
    Senate adjournment during the month of August or September until 
    Oct. 8, 1945; the resolution also made provision for the earlier 
    reassembling of the two Houses by the leadership if legislative 
    expediency should so warrant.

    On July 18, 1945,(16) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 68):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
16. 91 Cong. Rec. 7733, 7734, 79th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That when the House adjourns on Saturday, July 21, 
    1945, it stand adjourned until 12 o'clock meridian on Monday, 
    October 8, 1945, or until 12 o'clock meridian on the third day 
    after Members are notified to reassemble in accordance with section 
    3 of this concurrent resolution, whichever occurs first.
        Sec. 2. That the consent of the House of Representatives is 
    hereby given to an adjournment of the Senate at any time during the 
    month of August or September, 1945, until 12 o'clock meridian on 
    Monday, October 8, 1945, or until 12 o'clock meridian on the third 
    day after Members are notified to reassemble in accordance with 
    section 3 of this concurrent resolution, whichever occurs first.
        Sec. 3. The President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker 
    of the

[[Page 4810]]

    House of Representatives shall notify the Members of the Senate and 
    the House, respectively, to reassemble whenever in their opinion 
    legislative expediency shall warrant it or when-ever the majority 
    leader of the Senate and the majority leader of the House, acting 
    jointly, or the minority leader of the Senate and the minority 
    leader of the House, acting jointly, file a written request with 
    the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House that the 
    Congress reassemble for the consideration of legislation.

Changing Text Agreed to by Both Houses

Sec. 5.12 Changes in the text of a joint resolution agreed to by the 
    two Houses (but not yet sent to the President) may be made by 
    concurrent resolution, called up by unanimous consent, which 
    directs the Clerk to make corrections in the enrollment of the 
    joint resolution.

    On Feb. 1, 1937,(17) the House was considering a Senate 
amendment to a joint resolution (H.J. Res. 81) creating a Joint 
Committee on Government Organization which had passed both the House 
and the Senate. Mr. John E. Rankin, of Mississippi, offered an 
amendment to the Senate amendment, but the Speaker (18) 
ruled it out of order because it amended language in the resolution to 
which both Houses had already agreed. The Speaker then indicated that 
the proposed change could be effected by concurrent resolution: 
(19)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. 81 Cong. Rec. 646-48, 75th Cong. 1st Sess.
18. William B. Bankhead (Ala.).
19. See 7 Cannon's Precedents Sec. Sec. 1041, 1042 for instances in 
        which concurrent resolutions were used to amend bills agreed to 
        by both Houses.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Mr. [Claude A.] Fuller [of Arkansas]: Mr. Speaker, a 
    parliamentary inquiry.
        The Speaker: The gentleman will state it.
        Mr. Fuller: Cannot that be amended by unanimous consent?
        The Speaker: The only way under the rules of the House by which 
    this situation could be changed would be by a concurrent 
    resolution, agreed to by both Houses, changing the text of the 
    matter already passed upon by the House and accepted by the Senate.

Sec. 5.13 Items in an appropriation bill which were not in disagreement 
    between the two Houses, and hence not committed to the conferees, 
    were changed through adoption of a concurrent resolution called up 
    unanimous consent.

    On July 23, 1962,(20) the House adopted a concurrent 
resolution (H. Con. Res. 505) ordering the
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
20. 108 Cong. Rec. 14400, 14403, 87th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 4811]]

Clerk of the House to make certain changes in the enrollment of a bill 
(H.R. 11038) making supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year 
1962. Mr. Albert Thomas, of Texas, asked unanimous consent that further 
reading of the resolution be dispensed with so that he could explain 
the purpose of the resolution. The proceedings were as follows:

                Second Supplemental Appropriation Bill, 1962

        Mr. Thomas: Mr. Speaker, pursuant to the unanimous agreement of 
    last Friday,(21) I call up for consideration a House 
    concurrent resolution.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
21. See 108 Cong. Rec. 14364, 87th Cong. 2d Sess., July 20, 1962, for 
        the unanimous-consent request ``to consider on Monday next a 
        concurrent resolution in connection with . . . H.R. 11038.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 505

            Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
        concurring), That the Clerk of the House of Representatives be 
        authorized and directed in the enrollment of the bill H.R. 
        11038 to make the following changes in the engrossed House 
        bill:
            (1) Page 2, strike out lines 13 to 16 inclusive. . . .
            (28) Page 14, strike out lines 4 to 7, inclusive.
            (29) Page 14, strike out lines 17 to 21, inclusive.

        Mr. Thomas (interrupting reading of the House concurrent 
    resolution): Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that further 
    reading of the resolution be dispensed with. I shall attempt to 
    explain what it is.
        The Speaker:(22) Is there objection to the request 
    of the gentleman from Texas?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
22. Sam Rayburn (Tex.).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        There was no objection.
        Mr. Thomas: Mr. Speaker, it will be recalled this deals with 
    what we call the second supplemental appropriation bill for 1962. 
    When the supplemental left the House it had 55 items carrying about 
    $447 million, which was a reduction, in round figures, of $100 
    million under the budget, a reduction of about 20 percent.
        It went to the other body and that body added some 29 items, 
    increasing the amount over the House by $112 million, which made a 
    round figure of about $560 million.
        We bring to you two items, one a concurrent resolution and the 
    other a conference report. First, why the concurrent resolution? We 
    put in the concurrent resolution some 29 items which were 
    originally in the supplemental, but those 29 items are a 
    reduction--follow me now--below the figure that was in the 
    supplemental when it left the House and the figure when it left the 
    Senate.
        It is a complete reduction and a change. It is in the 
    concurrent resolution because it could not be in the conference 
    report, and the reason it could not be in the conference report is 
    because it is a reduction in those amounts. . . .
        The previous question was ordered.
        The Speaker: The question is on the resolution.

[[Page 4812]]

        The concurrent resolution was agreed to.(1)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. Parliamentarian's Note: The second supplemental appropriation bill, 
        H.R. 11038, was passed by the House on Mar. 30, and by the 
        Senate, amended, on Apr. 6, 1962. The conference report was not 
        filed until July 20. Since fiscal year 1962 expired on June 30, 
        there was no longer a need for some of the funds carried in the 
        bill when it passed the two Houses. To eliminate the sums no 
        longer required, but not in disagreement, the concurrent 
        resolution was agreed to.
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Rescinding Passage of Bill

Sec. 5.14 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution rescinding the 
    action of the two Houses in connection with the passage of a 
    private bill and providing that the bill be postponed indefinitely.

    On Feb. 7, 1952,(2) the House by unanimous consent 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. 
Res. 88):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2. 98 Cong. Rec. 934, 82d Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the action of the two Houses in connection with 
    the passage of the bill (S. 1236) for the relief of Kim Song Nore 
    be rescinded, and that the said bill be postponed indefinitely.

Rescinding Resolution of Adjournment

Sec. 5.15 A concurrent resolution was submitted proposing to rescind a 
    concurrent resolution adjourning the House to a day certain.

    On Aug. 23, 1951,(3) Mr. John E. Rankin, of Mississippi, 
offered a resolution (H. Con. Res. 152):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 3. 97 Cong. Rec. 10586, 82d Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That House Concurrent Resolution 151, Eighty-second 
    Congress, is hereby repealed.

    Mr. J. Percy Priest, of Tennessee, then interjected a motion that 
the House adjourn, and that motion was considered and agreed to (the 
motion to adjourn taking precedence over a concurrent resolution 
proposing to rescind a concurrent resolution adjourning the House to a 
day certain). Thereupon the House adjourned until Sept. 12, 1951, in 
accordance with the terms of House Concurrent Resolution 151.

Authorization to Conference Managers

Sec. 5.16 By concurrent resolution, the managers of a conference may be 
    authorized to

[[Page 4813]]

    consider amendments inadvertently omitted from the official papers.

    On July 20, 1956,(4) Mr. Clair Engle, of California, 
asked unanimous consent for the immediate consideration of the 
concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 86) authorizing the conferees on 
H.R. 1774, abolishing the Verendrye National Monument, North Dakota, to 
consider certain Senate amendments that were inadvertently omitted from 
the official papers and not originally disagreed to by the House.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 4. 102 Cong. Rec. 13724, 84th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The resolution was as follows:

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the conferees on H.R. 1774, in addition to the 
    Senate amendments already pending before them, be authorized to 
    consider the following amendments:
        ``(3) Page 1, line 6, strike out all after `permits' down to 
    and including `site' in line 8.
        ``(4) Page 1, strike out all after line 8 over to and including 
    line 5 on page 2.''

    There was no objection, and the concurrent resolution was agreed 
to.

Amending Conference Report

Sec. 5.17 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution amending a 
    conference report that had been agreed to by the two Houses.

    On Feb. 27, 1931,(5) the House by unanimous consent 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. 
Res. 52):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 5. 74 Cong. Rec. 6279, 6280, 71st Cong. 3d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the report of the Committee of Conference on the 
    disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the bill of the House (H.R. 
    980) entitled ``An Act to permit the United States to be made a 
    party defendant in certain cases,'' heretofore agreed to by the two 
    Houses be amended by adding at the end of the amendment agreed to 
    in the report the following new section:

            Sec. 7. This act shall not apply to any lien of the United 
        States held by it for its benefit under the Federal Reclamation 
        laws.

Rescinding Appointment of Conferees

Sec. 5.18 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution of the Senate 
    rescinding the action of the two Houses in appointing conferees and 
    providing for the return of the bill to the Senate for further 
    amendment.

    On May 20, 1940,(6) the House, by unanimous consent, 
agreed to
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 6. 86 Cong. Rec. 6463, 76th Cong. 3d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 4814]]

the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 47):

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the action of the two Houses, respectively, with 
    reference to the appointment of conferees on the bill (H.R. 8438) 
    making appropriations for the Navy Department and the naval service 
    for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1941, and for other purposes, 
    be, and it is hereby, rescinded; and that the bill, with the 
    accompanying papers, be returned to the Senate.

Providing for Joint Session

Sec. 5.19 A joint session to receive a communication from the President 
    is provided for by concurrent resolution.

    On Jan. 3, 1935,(7) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 1):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 7. 79 Cong. Rec. 15, 74th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the two Houses of Congress assemble in the Hall 
    of the House of Representatives on Friday, the 4th day of January, 
    1935, at 12:30 o'clock in the afternoon, for the purpose of 
    receiving such communications as the President of the United States 
    shall be pleased to make to them.(8)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 8. This is the customary form for the concurrent resolution convening 
        a joint session to hear the President's state of the Union 
        message. For similar examples, see 113 Cong. Rec. 34, 35, 90th 
        Cong. 1st Sess, Jan. 10, 1967; 109 Cong. Rec. 23, 88th Cong. 
        1st Sess., Jan. 9, 1963; and 100 Cong. Rec. 8, 83d Cong. 2d 
        Sess., Jan. 6, 1954.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sec. 5.20 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution providing for a 
    joint session of the two Houses to commemorate the 200th 
    anniversary of George Washington's birthday.

    On Jan. 20, 1932,(9) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. 
Res. 12):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 9. 75 Cong. Rec. 2342, 72d Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That in commemoration of the two-hundredth anniversary 
    of the birth of George Washington the two Houses of Congress shall 
    assemble in the Hall of the House of Representatives at 11:30 
    o'clock a.m. on Monday, February 22, 1932.
        That the President of the United States, as the Chairman of the 
    United States Commission for the celebration of the two-hundredth 
    anniversary of the birth of George Washington, is hereby invited to 
    address the American people in the presence of the Congress in 
    commemoration of the bicentennial anniversary of the birth of the 
    first President of the United States.
        That invitations to attend the ceremony be extended to members 
    of the

[[Page 4815]]

    cabinet, the Chief Justice and associate justices of the Supreme 
    Court of the United States, the Diplomatic Corps (through the 
    Secretary of State), the General of the Armies, the Chief of Naval 
    Operations, and the Major General Commandant of the Marine Corps, 
    and such other persons as the Joint Committee on Arrangements shall 
    deem proper.

Sec. 5.21 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution providing for a 
    joint session of the two Houses to receive a message from the 
    President; such session to commence immediately following the joint 
    session to count the electoral vote.

    On Jan. 6, 1945,(10) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 2):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. 91 Cong. Rec. 63, 79th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the two Houses of Congress assemble in the Hall 
    of the House of Representatives on Saturday, the 6th of January 
    1945, immediately following the counting of the electoral votes for 
    President and Vice President, as provided for in Senate Concurrent 
    Resolution 1, for the purpose of receiving such communications as 
    the President of the United States shall be pleased to make to 
    them.

    The terms ``joint meeting'' and ``joint session'' have distinct 
meanings. `Joint meeting' is properly used to describe joint 
proceedings during recesses of the two Houses for purposes that are 
usually ceremonial, while ``joint session'' refers to actual sessions 
of both Houses that have some legislative purpose, or which are 
prescribed by law as the count of the electoral vote (3 USC Sec. 15).

Sec. 5.22 A concurrent resolution providing for a joint session of the 
    House and the Senate to receive a message from the President is 
    privileged.

    On May 20, 1935 (11) Mr. Edward T. Taylor, of Colorado, 
asked for the immediate consideration of a concurrent resolution (H. 
Con. Res. 22) providing for a joint session of the House and Senate to 
receive a message from the President.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
11. 79 Cong. Rec. 7838, 74th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        The Speaker: (12) The question is on the resolution.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. Joseph W. Byrns (Tenn.).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Mr. [Thomas L.] Blanton [of Texas]: Mr. Speaker, reserving the 
    right to object, I wish to ask a question.
        The Speaker: The Chair is of the opinion that this is a 
    privileged resolution.

Sec. 5.23 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution pro

[[Page 4816]]

    viding for a joint session of the two Houses to count the electoral 
    votes for President and Vice President.

    On Jan. 5, 1937,(13) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 2):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. 81 Cong. Rec. 14, 75th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the two Houses of Congress shall meet in the Hall 
    of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, the 6th day of 
    January 1937, at 1 o'clock p.m., pursuant to the requirements of 
    the Constitution and laws relating to the election of President and 
    Vice President of the United States, and the President of the 
    Senate shall be their presiding officer; that two tellers shall be 
    previously appointed by the President of the Senate on the part of 
    the Senate and two by the Speaker on the part of the House of 
    Representatives, to whom shall be handed, as they are opened by the 
    President of the Senate, all the certificates and papers purporting 
    to be certificates of the electoral votes, which certificates and 
    papers shall be opened, presented, and acted upon in the 
    alphabetical order of the States beginning with the letter A; and 
    said tellers, having then read the same in the presence and hearing 
    of the two Houses, shall make a list of the votes as they shall 
    appear from the said certificates; and the votes having been 
    ascertained and counted in the manner and according to the rules by 
    law provided, the result of the same shall be delivered to the 
    President of the Senate, who shall thereupon announce the state of 
    the vote, which announcement shall be deemed a sufficient 
    declaration of the persons, if any, elected President and Vice 
    President of the United States, and, together with a list of the 
    votes, be entered on the Journals of the two Houses.

Sec. 5.24 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution providing for a 
    joint session to hear an address by the President of Brazil.

    On May 9, 1949,(14) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 59):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
14. 95 Cong. Rec. 5909, 81st Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the two Houses of Congress assemble in the Hall 
    of the House of Representatives on Thursday, the 19th day of May 
    1949, at 12:30 o'clock p.m., for the purpose of hearing an address 
    by His Excellency Eurico Gaspar Dutra, President of the United 
    States of Brazil.

    Parliamentarian's Note: This appears to have been a joint session, 
but most such occasions are joint meetings which are arranged 
informally by each House granting permission for a recess on the day 
agreed upon without a concurrent resolution being used.

[[Page 4817]]

Legislative Budget

Sec. 5.25 A legislative budget for a fiscal year was established by 
    concurrent resolution.

    On Feb. 27, 1948,(15) the House considered the following 
concurrent resolution (S. Con Res. 42) which had been made in order for 
consideration by the adoption of House Resolution 485:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
15. 94 Cong. Rec. 1875-85, 80th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That it is the judgment of the Congress, based upon 
    presently available information, that revenues during the period of 
    the fiscal year 1949 will approximate $47,300,000,000 and that 
    expenditures during such fiscal year should not exceed 
    $37,200,000,000, of which latter amount not more than 
    $26,600,000,000 would be in consequence of appropriations hereafter 
    made available for obligation in such fiscal year.

Providing Facilities for Prayer

Sec. 5.26 A concurrent resolution authorized the Architect of the 
    Capitol to make available a room, with facilities for prayer and 
    meditation, for the use of Members of the Senate and House.

    On July 17, 1953,(16) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. 
Res. 60):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
16. 99 Cong. Rec. 9073-76, 83d Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the Architect of the Capitol is hereby authorized 
    and directed to make available a room, with facilities for prayer 
    and meditation, for the use of Members of the Senate and House of 
    Representatives. The Architect shall maintain the prayer room for 
    individual use rather than assemblies and he shall provide 
    appropriate symbols of religious unity and freedom of worship.

Attendance at Foreign Meeting

Sec. 5.27 A concurrent resolution provided for the acceptance of an 
    invitation to attend a meeting of the Empire Parliamentary 
    Association and for the appointment of certain Members to a 
    delegation thereto.

    On June 22, 1943,(17) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 14):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
17. 89 Cong. Rec. 6268, 78th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the Senate and the House of Representatives 
    hereby accept the invitation tendered by the Speaker of the Senate 
    of Canada and joint-president of the Empire Parliamentary 
    Association, Dominion of Canada branch, to have four

[[Page 4818]]

    Members of the Senate and four Members of the House of 
    Representatives attend a meeting to be held in Ottawa, Canada, 
    during the period June 26 to July 1, 1943, at which the Dominion of 
    Canada Branch of the Empire Parliamentary Association will be host 
    to a delegation from the United Kingdom Parliament and probably to 
    delegations from the legislative bodies of Australia, New Zealand, 
    and Bermuda. The President of the Senate and the Speaker of the 
    House of Representatives are authorized to appoint the Members of 
    the Senate and the Members of the House of Representatives, 
    respectively, to attend such meeting and are further authorized to 
    designate the chairmen of the delegations from each of the Houses. 
    The expenses incurred by the members of the delegations appointed 
    for the purpose of attending such meeting, which shall not exceed 
    $1,000 for each of the delegations, shall be reimbursed to them 
    from the contingent fund of the House of which they are Members, 
    upon the submission of vouchers approved by the chairman of the 
    delegation of which they are members.

Honoring Former Presidents

Sec. 5.28 A concurrent resolution may be used by the Congress to extend 
    birthday greetings to a former President of the United States.

    On Aug. 2, 1949,(18) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. 
Res. 59):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
18. 95 Cong. Rec. 10628, 81st Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the Congress hereby extends to the Honorable 
    Herbert Hoover, our only living ex-President, its cordial birthday 
    greetings on his seventy-fifth birthday, and expresses its 
    admiration and gratitude for his devoted service to his country and 
    to the world; and that the Congress hereby expresses its hope that 
    he be spared for many more years of useful and honorable service; 
    and be it further
        Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit a copy of 
    this resolution to Mr. Hoover.

Sec. 5.29 By concurrent resolution a day was set aside for appropriate 
    exercises in commemoration of the life, character, and public 
    service of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

    On May 23, 1946,(19) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 152):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
19. 92 Cong. Rec. 5559, 79th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved, That Monday, the 1st day of July 1946, be set aside 
    as the day upon which there shall be held a joint session of the 
    Senate and the House of Representatives for appropriate exercises 
    in commemoration of the life, character, and public service of the 
    late Franklin D. Roosevelt, former President of the United States.

[[Page 4819]]

        That a joint committee, to consist of three Senators and five 
    Members of the House of Representatives, to be appointed by the 
    President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 
    Representatives, respectively, shall be named, with full power to 
    make all arrangements and publish a suitable program for the joint 
    session of Congress herein authorized, and to issue the invitations 
    hereinafter mentioned.
        That invitations shall be extended to the President of the 
    United States, the members of the Cabinet, the Chief Justice and 
    Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, and 
    such other invitations shall be issued as to the said committee 
    shall seem best.
        That all expenses incurred by the committee in the execution of 
    the provisions of this resolution shall be paid, one-half from the 
    contingent fund of the Senate and one-half from the contingent fund 
    of the House of Representatives.

Honoring Military Figures

Sec. 5.30 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution tendering the 
    thanks of Congress to General of the Army Douglas MacArthur.

    On July 20, 1962,(20) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. 
Res. 347):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
20. 108 Cong. Rec. 14329, 14330, 87th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the thanks and appreciation of the Congress and 
    the American people are hereby tendered to General of the Army 
    Douglas MacArthur, in recognition of his outstanding devotion to 
    the American people, his brilliant leadership during and following 
    World War II, and the unsurpassed affection held for him by the 
    people of the Republic of the Philippines which has done so much to 
    strengthen the ties of friendship between the people of that nation 
    and the people of the United States.(1)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. See also concurrent resolution commending Lt. Col. John H. Glenn, 
        USMC, on successfully completing the first United States manned 
        orbital space flight. 108 Cong. Rec. 2608, 87th Cong. 2d Sess., 
        Feb. 20, 1962.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sec. 5.31 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution authorizing the 
    use of the rotunda of the Capitol for lying-in-state ceremonies for 
    the body of General of the Army Douglas MacArthur.

    On Apr. 6, 1964,(2) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. 
Res. 74):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2. 110 Cong. Rec. 6878, 88th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That in recognition of the long and distinguished 
    service rendered by Douglas MacArthur, General of the Army of the 
    United States, the remains be per

[[Page 4820]]

    mitted to lie in state in the rotunda of the Capitol from April 8 
    to April 9, 1964, and the Architect of the Capitol, under the 
    direction and supervision of the President pro tempore of the 
    Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, shall take 
    all necessary steps for the accomplishment of that purpose.

Honoring Foreign Governments

Sec. 5.32 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution amending a 
    concurrent resolution providing for a joint session in 
    commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the liberation of Cuba.

    On Apr. 14, 1948,(3) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 184):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 3. 94 Cong. Rec. 4437, 80th Cong. 2d Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
    concurring), That the first paragraph of House Concurrent 
    Resolution 139, Eightieth Congress, is hereby amended to read as 
    follows:
        ``That in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the 
    liberation of Cuba, the two Houses of Congress shall assemble in 
    the Hall of the House of Representatives at 12 o'clock meridian, on 
    Monday, April 19, 1948.''

Sec. 5.33 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution extending the 
    congratulations of Congress to the Finnish Parliament on its 50th 
    anniversary.

    On Nov. 27, 1967,(4) the House considered and agreed to 
the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 49):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 4. 113 Cong. Rec. 33762, 33763, 90th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Whereas the year 1967 marks the fiftieth anniversary of the 
    independence of Finland; and
        Whereas these fifty years have been marked by close ties of 
    friendship and association between Finland and the United States: 
    Now, therefore, be it
        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring), That the Congress of the United States extends its 
    congratulations and best wishes to the Parliament of Finland on the 
    occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the independence of Finland 
    and in affirmation of the affection and friendship of the people of 
    the United States for the people of Finland.(5)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 5. Parliamentarian's Note: The concurrent resolution was enrolled on 
        parchment, signed by the Speaker and the Vice President, and 
        transmitted to the Secretary of State. The Secretary in turn 
        saw to it that the resolution was included in the next 
        diplomatic pouch to Finland.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Honoring Royalty

Sec. 5.34 The House agreed to a concurrent resolution to assemble the 
    House and the Senate in the rotunda to wel

[[Page 4821]]

    come the King and Queen of Great Britain and appointing a joint 
    committee to make necessary arrangements.

    On May 23, 1939,(6) the House, by unanimous consent, 
considered and agreed to the following concurrent resolution (S. Con. 
Res. 17):
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. 84 Cong. Rec. 6032, 76th Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
    concurring). That the two Houses of Congress shall assemble in 
    their respective Houses on Friday, June 9, 1939, at 10:30 o'clock 
    antemeridian, and thereafter, in recess, the Members of each House 
    shall proceed informally to the rotunda of the Capitol at 11 
    o'clock antemeridian, for the purpose of welcoming Their Majesties 
    the King and Queen of Great Britain, and the members of their 
    party, on the occasion of their visit to the Capitol, and at the 
    conclusion of such ceremonies the two Houses shall reassemble in 
    their respective Chambers.
        That a joint committee consisting of three Members of the 
    Senate, to be appointed by the President of the Senate, and three 
    Members of the House of Representatives, to be appointed by the 
    Speaker of the House, is hereby authorized to make the necessary 
    arrangements for carrying out the purpose of this concurrent 
    resolution.(7)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. See also S. Con. Res. 20, 84 Cong. Rec. 7151, 76th Cong. 1st Sess., 
        June 19, 1939, authorizing expenses from the contingent funds 
        of the two Houses for the reception of the King and Queen of 
        Great Britain in the rotunda of the Capitol.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------